


Broken promise

by AtPK



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Angst, Blood, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Character Death, M/M, eruri - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-17
Updated: 2015-07-17
Packaged: 2018-04-09 21:00:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4364000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AtPK/pseuds/AtPK
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This was inspired by a chat I had with zoeyslayerlovereruri re: what would happen if they were both going to die and Levi offered the serum to Erwin - what would Erwin do?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Broken promise

Erwin looked to his right; the titan struck from his left. Erwin was thrown from his horse, landing hard; something snapped in his back, a white hot blinding pain. He shouldn’t have been on the field, Levi had made him promise, but when everything had gone to shit, he’d been unable to stay on the sidelines. He hadn’t even attempted to put on gear, he couldn’t use it now anyway; he’d just grabbed the nearest horse, a blade, and galloped into the fray.

He blinked past the pain, feeling the tears roll from the corner of his eye into his hairline. Through the haze, Erwin saw him. Levi. He was horseless, dirt and blood smeared, but he was alive. Erwin felt the rush of relief and closed his eyes.

**

Levi had seen it. The moment Erwin had been knocked from his horse. The silly fool had been looking one way, and the titan had kicked him from the other. He’d flown about a foot before crashing and tumbling to the ground; unmoving. Erwin had promised him that he wouldn’t join the battle, no matter how bad it got. Erwin had promised him that he’d stay safe. Erwin had promised him, and Erwin had broken that promise and now Erwin was hurt, maybe dead, and all Levi could think about was getting to him.

Levi ducked his head and ran.

“Erwin,” he yelled.

**

Erwin heard his voice being called and opened his eyes, his breath starting to rattle in his chest. Levi was running towards him, straight like an arrow, unheeding of soldiers and titan’s alike. Erwin tried to move, tried to sit up, but he couldn’t feel anything below his waist.

He looked back at Levi just at the exact second that a titan’s fist swiped him from behind, crushing him into the ground.

“Noooo,” Erwin breathed, barely above a whisper, a breath on the wind. “Noooo, Levi.”

He couldn’t move. Levi didn’t move.

**

Levi coughed, forcing the muddy water back out of his lungs; he coughed and his whole body screamed in agony. He pulled an arm in under his chest and pushed himself up out of the mud; he shook his head to clear his vision of both the encroaching darkness of unconsciousness, and the water in his eyes.

He didn’t know what way he’d been running; he couldn’t see Erwin anymore.

Levi tried to push himself up higher, but his ribs protested and from the thin spray of blood he’d coughed up, he wouldn’t have been surprised if one or more of them weren’t broken, a shard of bone piercing into his lung.

“Levi,” he heard, faint, just barely audible over the noise of the battle field. Levi snapped his head in the direction his name had been called, and there Erwin was. Not too far away, but the distance of the moon from the sun, for Levi now.

**

Erwin had seen him move, pushing himself up out of the mud, and had put all his energy into calling out to him, hoping that it would be enough. Levi’s head had snapped instantly in his direction, and Erwin reached out to him. They were so close, and yet not close enough.

Levi hauled himself forward. Erwin could see the white bone of his leg through the mangle of flesh, and the way Levi’s face contorted with pain. He wanted to tell him to stop, that it wasn’t worth it, that they would have to make do with this at least, but even if he could have made himself heard, he knew that Levi would have ignored him anyway.

“Levi,” he breathed.

How had it come to this?

**

Levi bit down on his tongue, forcing himself to stay conscious. He was almost there. Erwin had reached out to him, and if it was the last thing he did, Levi was going to take his fucking hand.

“You promised,” he rasped.

“I’m sorry.” Erwin wheezed.

Erwin was in a bad way, his body twisted and bent, unnaturally.

“You promised.” Levi said again.

There were tears in Erwin’s eyes. Levi didn’t know whether from pain, or something else.

Levi pulled himself up to lay beside him.

**

Erwin turned his head towards Levi, and smiled.

“I’m glad you’re here.”

Levi just stared back at him, looking deep into his eyes, his breathing harsh and laboured. There was a thin film of blood on his lips, a stark contrast to the white of his skin. Erwin lifted his hand, a heavy weight on the end of his arm, and moved Levi’s hair back from his face.

“Even now, you’re beautiful.”

Levi blinked, scowled.

“You always have been full of shit.”

Erwin smiled again.

**

The thing was Levi knew Erwin was telling the truth; to Erwin, Levi was beautiful; even at his worst, Erwin only ever saw the best in him. Erwin accepted him unconditionally, even when he was being a shitty bad-tempered prick, who anyone, less patient, would have walked away from. Erwin was only person, other than his mother, to ever truly love him. Erwin had given him reason and purpose when he had none. Erwin was his fucking reason and purpose.

It was Erwin’s dream that had brought them to this point. It was Erwin’s dream Levi had been fighting for all this time. It was Erwin. All Erwin. There was no point, without Erwin.

“Levi,” Erwin asked.

And Levi reached into his jacket and pulled out the syringe.

**

“Take it.” Levi said.

Erwin should have known this was coming. Levi had proved time and again that he was willing to lay down his life for Erwin. This shouldn’t have come as a surprise. And yet Erwin still stared at it, blankly. He couldn’t take it. He wasn’t the one meant to see this through to the end. Levi was. Levi was the one who would make Erwin’s dream come true, even if Erwin wasn’t there to see it himself. He knew that Levi wouldn’t stop, just like he himself wouldn’t have stopped.

“Take it, Erwin.” Levi demanded, an edge of desperation in his voice. Erwin looked away. “Please,” Levi begged, trying to force the syringe into his hand. “Please don’t make me lose you too.” Erwin swallowed down a sob, and closed his fingers around the syringe.

He didn’t want to leave Levi. He didn’t want to lose Levi.

Levi relaxed the moment Erwin had taken syringe, and then succumbed to a fit of coughing, the blood bubbling up out of his mouth.

**

But it was ok, because Erwin would be ok.

The weight of responsibility was off him now, he’d decided to what to do with the serum; now he could relax. He pulled himself in closer to Erwin, wanting to feel the warmth of his body, wanting to breath in his scent one last time. Levi looked into his eyes, and he stared back.

“I like you quite a lot, y'know?”

Erwin hummed a laughed.

“I like you too, Levi.” Erwin breathed, barely above a whisper. “I like you very, very much.”

They’d never said it. It was unlikely they were ever going to now.

Levi started to cough again.

**

Erwin couldn’t watch his beautiful boy die like this, drowning in his own blood. It wrenched at him like a physical pain. His strength was almost gone. His vision was starting to narrow down, fuzzy now at the edges. If he didn’t act now, he soon wouldn’t be able to.

He just prayed that Levi would understand. Erwin had done his part. Now it was Levi’s turn.

Levi was struggling to breath, the air forcing it’s way out of his body with an awful gasping wheeze. Erwin used his fingers to turn the syringe around, lifted it, and then stabbed it into Levi’s arm, pressing down on the syringe before Levi could pull away.

Job down, he relaxed.

**

No, Levi screamed, but no sound came out of his mouth. He scrambled desperately at the needle, trying to wrench it out and away. It was meant to be for Erwin. What have you done? he demanded, but only his eyes showed his true horror. Erwin smiled at him, that kind, reassuring smile.

“I’m sorry, darling.” he sighed on a shallow breath. His eyes were starting to glaze over, starting to lose focus; he was trying to look at Levi but looking straight through him instead. “Finish it for me.”

Levi could feel the serum in his veins, burning and consuming and taking him over, transforming him.

**

“Finish it for me,”

Erwin knew this was it, he could feel his body start to convulse. He groaned around the pain and grabbed for Levi’s hand, squeezing it tightly, suddenly very afraid.

I love you.

I love.

I.

**

Levi felt Erwin’s body convulse beside him; he felt the squeeze of Erwin’s fingers around his hand; he saw the look of fear on Erwin’s face and then, he was gone, almost at the exact same instant as the serum ran it’s course, and Levi transformed.

Levi took the pain with him, roaring his grief at the uncaring sky.


End file.
